MAT275, HW 1

DR. NEAL BUSHAW

All problems are from Boyce/DiPrima, 10th edition. Due date is Sept 11, 2013. Assigned on 26 Aug 1.2.3. Consider the following dierential equation: dy/dt = ay + b, where a) b) c) both a and b are positive numbers. Find the general solution of the dierential equation. Sketch the solution for several dierent initial conditions. Describe how the solutions change under each of the following conditions: i) a increases. ii) b increases. dy/dt = a y b/a d/dt[ln|y b/a|] = a d/dt[ln|y b/a|]dt = a dt

Solution: a):

ln|y b/a| = at + c y b/a = ceat y = ceat + b/a b): Just expecting a few graphs, with dierent values for c. These dont have to be very good - since a, b are arbitrary, just looking for something that looks like an exponential. c):i): Again, this is a vague question, so something like as b increases, the asymptote increases. c):ii): as a increases, the asymptote decreases towards 0 and the rate of the exponential increases / exponential steepens / is stretched vertically /etc. 1.2.4. Consider the dierential equation dy/dt = ay b. a) Find the equilibrium solution ye . b) Let Y (t) = y ye ; thus Y (t) is the deviation from the equilibrium solution. Find the dierential equation satised by Y (t).
Date : 26 Aug.
1

DR. NEAL BUSHAW

Solution: a): dy/dt = 0 ay b = 0 ay = b y = b/a . b): People may have done this MANY dierent ways; the way I was hoping for is something like: Y (t) = y ye Y = y ye Y = ay b 0 Y = a(y b/a) Y = aY. 1.2.7. The eld mouse population in Example 1 satises the dierential equation dp/dt = 0.5p 450. a) Find the time at which the population becomes extinct if p(0) = 850. b) Find the time of extinction if p(0) = p0 , where 0 < p0 < 900. c) Find the initial population p0 if the population is to become extinct in 1 year. Solution: a): dp/dt = 0.5p 450, so they should get the general solution P (t) = ce0.5t + 900. Then IVP: 850 = ce0.50 + 900 gives c = 50. Then, want extinction time: 0 = 50e0.5t + 900 900 = 50e0.5t 18 = e0.5t ln 18 = 0.5t 2 ln 18 = t 5.78 months = t Missing that this is months here is okay; theyll get dinged in the third part for that mistake. b): IVP: p0 = c + 900, so p0 900 = c. Then same algebra as last time: 0 = (p0 900)e0.5t + 900 900 = e0.5t p0 900 900 ln = 0.5t p0 900 900 =t 2 ln p0 900 Any equivalent form to this is ne - if they used log rules to simplify the fraction, thats great, if not, that is ne too. c): P (12) = 0

MAT275, HW 1

(p0 900)e6 + 900 = 0 p0 900 = 900/e6 p0 = 900/e6 + 900 p0 = 897.77 Exact form is great, approximate is ne too. 1.2.13. The half-life of a radioactive material is the time required for an amount of this material to decay to one-half its original value. Show that for any radioactive material that decays according to the equation Q = rQ, the half-life and the decay rate r satisfy the equation r = ln 2. Solution. Lots of people will have had trouble with this, so be generous with partial credit as this is the hardest problem on this assignment. Q = rQ Q(t) = cert At this point, they can either choose an initial value, or leave it with c; it makes no dierence. 1 Q( ) = Q(0) 2 1 cer = cer0 2 1 r e = 2 1 r = ln 2 r = ln 2 r = ln 2.